Refrigerator door structure



Sept. 8, 1959 P. SCHORY ETAL 1 REFRIGERATOR DOOR STRUCTURE Filed Aug. 29. 1955 FAY B llll mmmmm' IN VEN TORS KENNETH P. SCHORY MICHAEL TURKO ATTORNEYS REFRIGERATOR DOOR STRUCTURE Kenneth P. Schory, Bensenville, and Michael Turko, Waukegan, Ill., assignors, by mesne assignments, to Amana Refrigeration, Inc., Amana, Iowa, a corporation of Iowa Application August 29, 1955, Serial No. 531,216

* Claims. (Cl. 312-414) This invention relates generally to refrigerator door V structures, and refers more particularly to the inner liners .or pans of the doors have been provided with depressed or embossed portions for the reception of separately formed shelving and/ or receptacles or containers for various foods to be frozen, and such shelving'or receptacles were received partially or wholly within the depressed areas of such liners or pans. In other instances the inner liners or pans were provided with openings through which portions of either the shelving or their anchorage means or the receptacles or their anchorage means extended, but this necessitated not only separate forming operations for the respective shelves and/or receptacles and assembly operations with the liners or pans of the doors, but also sealing gaskets or the equivalent about the edges of the openings aforesaid in the liners or pans to effectively prevent undesirable airflow through such openings in the liners or pans during the operation of the refrigerator.

With the foregoing in mind, one of the essential objects of the present invention is to provide a one-piece panel which not only is capable of serving as a door liner or pan, but is so shaped or formed that it also has portions that serve respectively as shelving or compartments or chambers for the reception of foods to be frozen. Thus, no added parts are necessary.

Another object is to provide a door liner or pan that is not only less expensive to manufacture, but obviates the necessity, as heretofore, of the separate forming and assembly operations above mentioned.

Other objects, advantages and novel details of construction of this invention will be made more apparent as this description proceeds, especially when considered in connection with the accompanying drawing, wherein:

Figure 1 is a fragmentary perspective view of a refrigerator cabinet with the hingedly mounted doors thereof in open position and showing one of said doors equipped with our invention.

Figure 2 is an enlarged vertical sectional view through the lower door shown in Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a horizontal sectional view taken along the line 3-3 on Figure 2.

Figure 4 is a fragmentary elevational view of the inner side of the inner liner or pan of the lower door shown in Figure 1.

Referring now to the drawings, A is a refrigerator cabinet having upper and lower storage compartments and 11 respectively separated by an insulated partition atent O 2,903,315 Patented Sept. 8, 1959 12, and provided with hingedly mounted closures or doors B and C respectively.

In the present instance, any suitable refrigerant circuit may be employed in the refrigerator, and such refrigerant circuit may include any suitable evaporators (not shown) within the compartments 10 and 11 respectively for cooling such compartments to the desired temperatures.

Our invention may be embodied in either or both of the closures or doors B and C. As shown, the lower closure or door C has an outer panel or shell '13, an inner panel or liner 14, and suitable insulation 15 therebetween. Such outer shell 13 and inner liner 14 may be secured peripherally to each other in any suitable manner to retain the intermediate insulation 15 in place and otherwise to provide a rigid door structure. As shown particularly in Figure 2, the marginal portions of the outer shell 13 throughout the periphery thereof are turned laterally inwardly to provide a continuous reinforcing flange 16. The inner liner .14 is formed with a marginal portion 17 which extends continuously around the periphery thereof in substantial parallel relationship to the reinforcing flange 16. The lower edge of the inner liner terminates short of the corresponding edge of the outer shell 13, and the resulting space is closed by a filler strip 18. The filler strip '18 is welded or otherwise rigidly secured to the reinforcing flange 16 at the lower edge and at opposite upright sides of the outer shell 13, and is rigidly secured to the inner liner 14 at the lower edge thereof. A rubber gasket 19 is secured to and extends continuously about the periphery of the inner liner 14 for engagement with the front wall of the refrigerator cabinet A around the access opening to the storage compartment 11 to provide a door seal.

The essence of this invention resides in the construction of the liner 14, which as shown is a one-piece panel throughout, of any suitable material and of any suitable thickness. In the present instance, such liner, usually called a door pan, is shaped, preferably 'by a vacuum drawing operation to provide a transversely extending inwardly opening chamber or compartment 21a having a horizontal bottom constituting a shelf 20, a plurality of inwardly opening vertically extending laterally spaced compartments or chambers 21, and an inwardly projecting enclosing border frame 22. Although the shelf 20, chambers 21 and 21a and border frame 22 aforesaid are preferably formed by a vacuum drawing operation, such elements could readily be produced by other operations, for example by means of any suitable die or press.

By referring to Figure 2, it will be noted that the shelf 21) is a transversely extending inwardly projecting open return bent portion or rib of the liner and has a substantially horizontal upper surface 23. Opposite ends of this shelf 20 connect into the upright opposite sides of the border frame 22. The vertically extending chambers 21 are separated by vertically extending laterally spaced identical ribs 24 which are vertically extending inwardly projecting open return bent portions of the liner. The upper ends of these ribs 24 connect into and form depending extensions of the horizontal shelf 20, while the lower ends of said ribs 24 terminate short of and are spaced from the lower side of the border frame. The border frame 22 is a continuous inwardly projecting open return bent portion or rib of the liner and is disposed in spaced relation to the marginal portion 17 thereof. By referring to Figures 2 and 3 it will be noted that the insulation 15 extends into and completely fills the open return bent portions or ribs 20, 22 and 24. I

Vertically spaced upright portions 14a and 14b of the inner liner are located at and connect into the outer ends of the open return bent portions 20, 22 and 24 and are substantially parallel to the outer panel or shell 13. These upright portions 14a and 14b cooperate with the ribs 20, 22 and 24 to form the compartments 21 and 21a.

The chamber or compartment 21a is primarily designed and adapted to receive substantially rectangular or square shaped food packages D to be frozen, while the vertically extending compartments or chambers 21 are primarily designed and adapted to receive circular or cylindrical cans E of 'foods to be frozen. Such vertically extending compartments '21 are preferably covered intermediate their ends by an upright plate or panel 25 which extends across the ribs 24 and has outwardly extending terminal portions or flanges 26 connected in any suitable .manner to the upright opposite sides of the border frame '22. The panel 25 is so constructed and arranged with respect to said compartments 21 that inlet and outlet openings 27 and 28 respectively are provided above and below said panel for the insertion and removal of the circular or cylindrical cans E aforesaid. In this connection, it will be noted that the lower ends of the vertically extending compartments '21 are formed by the upper surface 29 of the lower horizontal side of the rib or border frame 22. Preferably this upper surface 29 is curved downwardly and inwardly from the rear upright walls of the channel-shaped compartments 21 and then inclines upwardly and inwardly to provide a transversely extending inwardly opening horizontal trough for retaining against accidental displacement the lowermost of vertical stacks of cans E in the compartments 21. The curvature indicated at '29 substantially conforms to the curvature of the cans E received in said compartments 21. Thus, the cans may be stacked one above the other within the compartments 21 by inserting such cans one at a time through the inlet openings 27 into the compartments 21, and may be removed one at a time as desired from the outlet openings 28.

Ahorizontal rod or bar 31 extends across the compartment 21a a short distance above the upper surface 23 of the shelf 20 and serves to retain food packages C on the shelf. The rod 31 has forwardly extending terminal portions 32 connected to the upright opposite sides of the border frame 22.

The drawings and the foregoing specification constitute a description of the improved refrigerator door structure'in such full, clear, concise and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to practice the invention, the scope of which is indicated 'by the appended claims.

What we claim as our invention is:

1. In combination, a door having a transversely extending inwardly opening compartment provided with a horizontal bottom constituting a horizontally extending shelf, and a series of laterally spaced vertically extending inwardly opening compartments immediately below said transversely extending compartment, said vertically extending compartments having a common bottom and being separated from each other by vertically extending members connected to and projecting downwardly from the underside of said horizontally extending shelf toward said common bottom, and a single horizontally extending upright rigid panelof less depth than the over-all height of said vertically extending compartments crossing said vertically. extendingmembers and terminally secured to said door, the upper horizontal edge of said panel being spaced .from said horizontally extending shelf to provide inlets at the upper ends of saidvertically extending compartments for articles to be placed within said vertically extending compartments in rear of said panel, and the lower horizontal edge of said panel being spaced from the common bottom aforesaid to provide outlets at the lower ends of said vertically extending compartments for the.articles aforesaid that were placed via said inlets within said vertically extending compartments in rear of said .panel.

2. In combination, a door having an upright inner liner provided with a transversely extending inwardly opening compartment having a horizontal bottom constituting a horizontally extending shelf, a series of laterally spaced vertically extending inwardly opening compartments immediately below said transversely extending compartment, and a horizontally extending portion below and constituting a common bottom for said vertically extending compartments, said vertically extending compartments being separated from each other by vertically extending ribs of said liner integral with and projecting downwardly from the underside of said horizontally extending shelf toward said common bottom, and a'separate horizontally extending upright panel of less depth than the over-all height of said vertically extending compartments crossing said vertically extending ribs and terminally secured to said door, the upper horizontal edge of said panel being spaced from said horizontally extending shelf to provide inletsat the upper ends-of said vertically extending compartments for articles to be placed within said vertically extending compartments in rear of said panel, and the lower horizontal edge of said panel being spaced from the common bottom aforesaid toprovide outlets at the lower ends of said vertically extending compartments for the articles aforesaid that were placed via said inlets within said vertically extending compartments in rear of said panel.

3. .In combination, a door having a transversely extending inwardly opening compartment provided with a horizontal bottom constituting a horizontally extending shelf, a series of laerally spaced vertically extending inwardly opening compartments immediately below said transversely extending compartment, and a borderframe enclosing said transversely extending and said vertically extending compartments, the lower horizontal side of said border frame constituting a common bottom for said vertically extending compartments, said vertically extending compartments being separated from each other by vertically extending members connected to and projecting downwardly from the underside of said horizontally extending shelf toward said common bottom, and a separate horizontally extendingupright panel of less depth than the overall height of said vertically extending compartments cross said vertically extending members and terminally secured to upright opposite sides ofsaid border frame, the upper horizontal edge of said panel being spaced from said horizontally extending shelf to provide inlets at the upper ends of said vertically extending compartments for articles to be placed within said vertically extending compartments in rear of said panel, and the lower horizontal edge of said panel being spaced from the common bottom aforesaid to provide outlets at the lower ends of said vertically extending compartments for the articles aforesaid that were placed via said inlets within said vertically extending compartments in rear of said panel.

4. In combination, a door having a transversely extending inwardly opening compartment provided with a horizontal bottom constituting a horizontally extending shelf, a series of laterally spaced vertically extending inwardly opening compartments immediately below said'transversely extending compartment, and a border frame enclosing said transversely extending and said vertically extending compartments, the lower horizontal .side of said border frame constituting a common bottom for said-vertically extending compartments, said vertically extending compartments being separated from each other by vertically extending members connected to and projecting downwardly from the underside of said horizontally extending shelf toward said common bottom, and a separate horizontally extending upright panel of less depth than the overall height of said vertically extending compartments crossing said vertically extending members and terminally secured to upright opposite sides of said border frame, the upper horizontal edge of said panel being spaced from said horizontally extending shelf to provide inlets at the upper ends of said vertically extending compartments for articles to be placed within said vertically extending compartments in rear of said panel, and the lower horizontal edge of said panel being spaced from the common bottom aforesaid to provide outlets at the lower ends of said vertically extending compartments for the articles aforesaid that were placed via said inlets within said vertically extending compartments in rear of said panel, the lower horizontal side of said border frame comprising a transversely extending upwardly and inwardly opening horizontal trough for retaining against accidental displacement through said outlets the lowermost of the articles in said vertically extending compartments. 3

5. In combination, a door having an upright inner liner provided with a transversely extending inwardly opening compartment, a plurality of laterally spaced vertically extending inwardly opening compartments immediately below said transversely extending compartment, and a horizontally extending upwardly and inwardly opening trough-shaped portion below and constituting a common bottom for said vertically extending compartments, the bottom of said transversely extending compartment being a horizontally extending inwardly projecting rib of said liner, adjacent sides of said vertically extending compartments being vertically extending inwardly projecting ribs of said liner integral with and projecting downwardly from the underside of said horizontally extending rib toward the horizontally extending trough-shaped portion aforesaid, and a separate horizontally extending upright closure for said vertically extending compartments crossing said vertically extending ribs and terminally secured to said liner, the depth of said closure being less than the over-all height of said vertically extending compartments, the upper horizontal edge of said closure being spaced from said horizontally extending rib to provide inlets at the upper ends of said vertically extending compartments for articles to be placed within said vertically extending compartments in rear of said closure, and the lower horizontal edge of said closure being spaced from said horizontally extending trough-shaped portion to provide outlets at the lower ends of said vertically extending compartments for the articles aforesaid that were placed via said inlets within said vertically extending compartments in rear of said closure.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,189,456 King July 4, 1916 1,435,935 Malacos Nov. 21, 1922 1,912,344 Chisholm May 30, 1933 2,052,466 Heise Aug. 25, 1936 2,412,904 Money Dec. 17, 1946 2,694,906 Didion Nov. 23, 1954 2,718,446 Hinkel Sept. 20, 1955 2,728,623 Foerstner Dec. 27, 1955 2,784,044 Kurowski Mar. 5, 1957 

